Railway and road toy



April 20, 1965 N. L. CASE ETAL 3,179,063

RAILWAY AND ROAD TOY Filed Nov. 9, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS 4051, 4. wx 1/4/44: 4. s/waer April 1965 N. L. CASE ETAL RAILWAY AND ROADTOY Filed Nov. 9. 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS 4/054 4. as!

p l 20, 11965 N. 1.. CASE ETAL 3,179,063

RAILWAY AND ROAD TOY 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Nov. 9, 1961 r J r w, T2 2mm w v 4 y mi. a M W WW 5 4 y; m F g Z 4 a z E J I a ll m F a m a w z wF /6. E /98 z I N. L. CASE ETAL RAILWAY AND ROAD TOY F/G. I4 26 April20, 1965 Filed Nov. 9. 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 244 I I I! 2 3 UnitedStates Patent 3,179,063 RAILWAY AND ROAD TOY Noel L. Case and Wayne A.Gilbert, Girard, Pa., assignors to Louis Marx & Company, Inc., New York,N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Nov. 9, 1961, Ser. No. 151,392 20Claims. (Cl. 104149) This invention relates to traflic toys, and moreparticularly to such a toy which combines a railway and a road toy.

The general object of the present invention is to provide a traflic toywhich combines rail and road traffic. Both the rail and road trafiic areelectrically operated and may be controlled independently of one anotherby conventional speed regulating devices. The railway portion of the toymay be of standard type, preferably the HO gage, but the invention mayalso make use of 0 gage trains.

A more particular object is to enhance the realism and excitementobtained from operation of the toy, and for this purpose the toy isprovided with grade crossings and crossing gates. A further object is toprovide automatic closing of the crossing gates and stopping of the roadvehicle at the gate. For convenience the road vehicle is referred to asan auto, but it will be understood that it may simulate a truck or busor other such vehicle.

In accordance with further features and objects of the invention, theauto approaches the crossover at high speed so that it seems to race thetrain to the crossing. If too late, it is stopped abruptly, just aheadof the gate. If not too late, it crosses the track at maximum speed.This has the additional advantage that the crossover may be devoid ofpower strips at the railway track, thereby simplifying the structure ofthe crossover, and in addition keeping the railway track clear fordepending coupler mechanism of conventional type on the railway cars.

Still another object of the invention is to make it possible for thetrain to run in either direction without spoiling the automatic controlof the crossing gates and autos. Still another object is to provide atwo-lane road or highway with autos running in opposite directions, andwith appropriate gates on both sides of the railway for control of bothautos. Still another object of the invention is to provide a loop ofroad which is crossed by the railway, there then being two crossoversand four crossing gates when using two lane road sections, and toappropriately control all of the crossing gates without additionalcomplication of the control mechanism required.

To accomplish the foregoing general objects, and other more specificobjects which will hereinafter appear, the invention resides in the roadand rail toy elements and their relation one to another, as arehereinafter more particularly described in the following specification.The specification is accompanied by drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view and wiring diagram explanatory of theinvention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a crossover with two road lanes andcrossing gates;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view explanatory of the construction of the roadsections;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a relay which forms a part of theinvention;

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view explanatory of the constructionof a crossing gate;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view explanatory of the operation of a sleevetype ramp used on the railway to control the crossing gate;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary plan view explanatory of the construction of theroad sections;

FIGS. 8 and 9 are side and bottom views of an auto 3,179,063 PatentedApr. 20, 1965 which may be used on road sections like that shown inFIGS. 2, 3, and 7;

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary transverse section through one rail of therailway at a sleeve type ramp;

FIG. 11 shows schematically how the metal wheels of the locomotive areused for connection to the locomotive motor in a two rail system;

FIG. 12 is a similar view showing the use of insulation wheels for therailway cars following the locomotive;

FIG. 13 is a similar view showing how a special contact shoe and thewheels are used for connection to the motor of an O gage locomotiveoperating on three rail track;

FIG. 14 is a sectional view explanatory of a detail of the constructionof the crossover;

FIG. 15 is a wiring diagram explanatory of the power supply for therailway track part of the toy;

FIG. 16 is a wiring diagram explanatory of the power supply for theroadway part of the toy;

FIG. 17 is a wiring diagram showing both parts supplied from a singlepower supply source; and

FIG. 18 is a wiring diagram for an AC power supply for an O gagerailway.

Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to FIG. 1, the tralfictoy comprises toy railway track sections indicated at 12 and 14. Somemay be curved as at 12, and some straight as at 14, to effectuate anydesired track layout. The track sections include metal rails 17 and 18for power supply, here indicated to be connected to the terminals 20 and22. An electrically driven locomotive with metal wheels is assumed to berunning on the railway, and as usual is followed by a train of carscoupled to the locomotive. For simplicity, these are not shown inFIG. 1. The metal locomotive wheels on one side are insulated from thoseon the other side, and the car wheels are made of insulation material.

The toy further comprises highway or road sections indicated at 15 and16. The curved sections 15 and straight sections 16 make up a closedloop of road only part of which is shown in the drawing. The upper endof the road loop, not shown, is smaller than and is located within therailway loop.

There is an electrically driven auto 24 running on the road sections,and the latter include both guide means and metal power supply strips.In FIGS. 2 and 3 the guide means consists of a groove 26, and the powersupply strips are metal strips disposed edgewise and embedded in aplastics body or section 28, as shown at 30 and 32. These stripspreferably are embedded deeply so that the :top edges project onlyslightly from the insulation material 28.

The toy further comprises a special crossover section best shown in FIG.2. This matches the track sections 14 in one direction, as shown at 34,and it matches the road sections 16 in the other direction, as shown at36. There is also an electrically operated crossing gate generallydesignated 38 at the crossover, this including a gate arm 40 which maybe lowered to a closed position across the road, or may be raised to anopen position as shown.

A control section of one of the metal power supply strips, in this casethe strip 32, is isolated from the remainder, as indicated at 42, forcontrol purposes, it being bypassed by a conductor 44, and it beingseparately energized through a control relay which is housed within andconcealed by a simulated gatemans shanty 46.

Referring now to FIG. 4, the relay has a first coil 48 and a second coil50 for moving a ferrous armature 52 which is pivoted at 54. The relayhas a pair of spring contacts 56 eyeletted at 58 to an insulation base60. These may be called gate contacts because they close a power supplycircuit to the crossing gate in order to e9 lower the same. The relayhas another pair of spring contacts 62 which may be called go contactsbecause they supply power to the control section of the road to propelthe auto over the crossing. The armature 52 carries a conductive piece64 which engages and bridges either the contacts 56 or the contacts 62,but not both. With this relay construction the relay has a stick action,that is, even if deenergized it remains in the position it last occupieduntil the opposite relay coil is energized.

Referring now to FIG. 1, the railway has .a ramp 70 ahead of thecrossing, this being electrically connected to the first relay coil 48for closing the gate cont-acts 56 and thereby lowering or closing thecrossing gate 44 and at the same time opening the go contacts 62 andthereby dc-energizing the control strip 42 as a locomotive approachesthe crossing from the right. There is also a ramp 72 beyond the crossingan amount at least equal to the length of the train, and the ramp 72 isconnected by wires 74 and 76 to the other relay coil 50 for opening thegate contacts 56 and closing the go contacts 62, thereby opening thecrossing gate 40 and energizing the control strip 4 2.

The road sections preferably simulate a two lane highway so that autoscan run simultaneously in opposite directions, as indicated in FIG. 1 bythe autos 24 and 78. FIGS. 2 and 3 show how each road section has aguide groove 226 and power supply strips 230 and 232, in addition to thegroove 26 and strips 30 and 32. FIG. 2 shows further how the specialcrossover section has two crossing gates on opposite sides of the track,there being a gate 238, 240, in addition to the gate 38, 40. These gatesare alike but preferably are disposed on opposite sides of the road andpoint in opposite directions, so that gate 49 serves primarily for theauto approaching its side, and gate 240 primarily for the autoapproaching its side. However, if desired, the arms may be disposedclose to the road ancl/ or lengthened so that they cross both lanes.

In FIG. 2 it will be seen that there is an isolated control section 242of power strip 232, this being bypassed by a conductor 244. The controlstrip 242 is on the approach side, that is, on the side of the railwayopposite to the control strip 42. It serves the same purpose as strip42, but for an auto coming in opposite direction. It is controlled bythe same relay housed at 46.

Reverting to FIG. 1, the road sections preferably form a closed loopwhich is crossed or intersected by the track sections 14. In consequencethere are two of the grade crossings previously described, with fourcrossing gates, one on each side of the railway track at each of the twocrossovers. The additional crossing gates are marked 340 and 449. Thereare also four control strips, one for each highway lane on theappropriate approach side of the railway track, and the additionalcontrol strips are marked 342 and 442.

Inasmuch as the length of a usual railway train may be comparable to oreven exceed the spacing between the sides of the road loop, and inasmuchas either auto running on its road loop travels at such speed that itwould have to be stopped by a gate on one side or the other of the loop,the control mechanism is greatly simplified by using :a single controlrelay for simultaneous control of all of the crossing gates and controlstrips. The crossing gates are electrically operated, in this case bysolenoids, and the solenoids for the respective gates are indicated at38, 238, 338, and 43 8 respectively. On examination of FIG. 1, it willbe seen that the relay contacts 56 (the gate contacts) are connected toall of the solenoids through conductors 80, 84, 86 and gt). In thepresent case the solenoids are wired in series, and the return circuitis through conductor 92 to terminal 94, with the circuit originating atterminal 96.

Similarly the go contacts 6 2 serve to energize all of the controlstrips, and in the present case the current supply is through conductoras to strip 42, thence through conductor 1% to strip 242, thence throughconductor 102 to strip 442, and through conductor 104 to strip 342. Thepropulsion power supply originates at terminal 106, and the return isthrough the other power supply stri 30 and conductor 108 leading toterminal 110.

The speed of the autos may be regulated independently of one another andof the train. In the present case auto 24 is controlled by a rheostat114 which also may be moved to an off position, thereby stopping theauto. The speed of auto 78 may be regulated by a similar rheostat 112which also may be turned to an off position. it will be noted, however,that the control strips 42, 24-2, 342 and 442 are supplied from aconductor 116 which is connected to terminal 106 ahead of the rheostats,so that maximum voltage is applied to the control strips.

This is a desirable feature of the invention for several reasons. One isthat it makes the autos race the train to the crossing at high speed sothat the operation of the toy is exciting to watch. Anothe is that iteliminates the need for a power strip from one side of the railway trackto the other. Thus, in FIG. 14 the power strip 118 is cut away ordepressed, as shown at 120, so that it underlies and does not interferewith the railway rails 122 and 124. The auto runs fast enough to crossthe track by coasting over the track, and this is true even when theauto has been stopped at the crossing and resumes travel when the gateis raised. The auto is small and accelerates rapidly under the appliedmaximum voltage.

With this simplified crossover the rails of the track may be and arecontinuous, and in addition, the crossover may be given a molded contourat 126 (FIG. 2) which largely fills the space between the rails exceptfor clearance for the flanges of the railway wheels. This provides arerailing action which helps guard against derailing at the crossover.

Still another advantage of interrupting the power strips at the railwaytrack is that there then is no interference with depending couplermechanism associated with the car couplers. HO gage trains generallyemploy a standard coupler with depending sensing elements to facilitateremote coupling control. These sensing elements depend to a low point,and with the present construction there is no danger of hitting a powerstrip.

Reverting to FIG. 1, an additional feature is that the train may beoperated in either direction, either by reversing it, as is commonlydone under remote control, or by turning the entire train end-for-end tooperate in counterclockwise instead of clockwise direction. For thispurpose there are two spaced ramps 70 and 128 ahead of the crossovers,and two spaced ramps 72 and 130 beyond the crossovers. The inner ornearer ramps 70 and 130 are corn nected to one another and to the relaycoil 48 by con-- ductors 132 and 134. The outer or further ramps 72 and128 are connected together and to the relay coil 5t? by conductors 74and 76. A locomotive proceeding clockwise and engaging the ramp 128causes no change because the armature 52 is already in its right handposition. However, on engaging the ramp 70 the relay shifts, the gatesclose, and the autos stop. When the locomotive reaches the ramp 130 itcauses no change because the armature is already in its left position,but when the locomotive reaches ramp 72, the relay shifts and the gatesopen and the autos proceed. Thus the ramps 7% and 72 alone areeffective, as previously described, and the additional ramps 123 and 134are idle or superfluous. However, when a locomotive approaches incounterclockwise direction, it is the ramps 13% and 128 which becomeeffec tive, and the ramps 72 and 70 are idle.

The detailed construction of the crossing gate may vary Widely, the onlyessential being that it be electrically operated. However, theconstruction of the particular gets here shown may be described withreference to FIG. 5, in which the parts are all separated. The gate arm40 with its counterweight 140 are carried, at a hole 142, on shaft 144.This is turned by a pinion 146 which meshes with a rack 148. The rack ismade of brass or other nonferrous metal, and in the present case is acircular rack so that there is no concern over its orientation about itslongitudinal axis. The rack is secured end to end with a ferrous plunger150 vertically slidable in a solenoid coil 38. The magnetic circuit ispreferably completed and made more efiicient by ferrous outside framepieces 152 which are assembled on opposite sides of the coil 38. Theseparts are all received within housing sides 154 and 156, which arepreferably molded out of a plastics material. One of the sides mayinclude a mast 158 with a crossover warning 160. The bearings for shaft144 are shown at 162. The parts may be held in assembled relation by ascrew 164 passing through holes 166 and 167, the latter being threaded.The gate arm 40 is supported outside the housing 154, 156, as will beclear from inspection of FIG. 2.

The toy vehicle running on the road may simulate a passenger car, truck,bus, racing car, or the like. Such vehicles are already known, andreferring to FIGS. 8 and 9, the particular vehicle here shown employs adepending projection or pilot pin 170 which runs freely in the guidegroove 26 or 226 shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 7. It also has a pair ofspring contact shoes 172 and 174, which run on the exposed top edges ofthe metal power supply strips 30 and 32 (or 230 and 232). The resilientcontact shoes 172 and 174 are preferably disposed adjacent the guide pin170, and all are preferably near the forward end of the vehicle, thusgiving the rear end some freedom for sideward or skidding movement inrounding turns at high speed. This skidding may be limited by making theprojection 170 elongated instead of circular.

The road sections may be assembled in different known ways. In theparticular case here shown the sections are aligned by dowels 176 (FIG.7) and are held together by a spring clip 178 which is received inmating slots. The power strips project horizontally or lengthwise at onelane, as shown at 180, and these projections are received tightlyalongside the non-projecting power strips of the next section to providecontinuous electrical contact. The next section similarly has projectingends on the other lane, as shown at 182. The plastic material is cutaway as shown at 181 to help receive the projecting ends 180 and 182,that is, to permit sideward flexing of the nonprojecting ends.

The ramps shown at 70, 72, 128 and 130 in FIG. 1 are shown in greaterdetail in FIGS. 6 and 10. The track section here is of the HO gage typeand comprises an insulation base 184 which simulates the ties of arailway track, and two metal rails 17 and 18, which are secured to theinsulation base. Various constructions have been devised for such track,and the rails may be either solid metal or hollow sheet metal. The rampconsists of a sleeve of very thin insulation 186, for example Mylar, anda sleeve of very thin metal 188 around one of the rails, as is bestshown in FIG. 10.

The sleeve is so thin that the wheels readily ride over it. The sleeveis short enough so that when one wheel is on the sleeve, as shown inFIG. 6, at least one other wheel is off the sleeve. These are locomotivewheels 198 and 192, and are therefore made of metal and are electricallyconnected together on one side, in conse quence of which the rail 18 ismomentarily connected to the sleeve. A clip 194 for receiving a wirelead forms a part of the assembly, and is connected to the sleeve, andprovides a pulse of current through an outside wire to operate therelay. A sleeve of this type may be made as a separate accessory whichmay be clipped on to the track section at any desired point, or oneparticular section may be provided permanently with two such ramps.

In FIG. the thin metal 188 is held by additional sheet metal 187 and189, and the latter is eyeletted at 6 193 to clip 194. The thicknessesand clearances have been exaggerated in the drawing, and it will beunderstood that in practise the sleeve material fit's closely about therail and base.

The relay coil circuit back to terminal of the power supply is completedbecause the outer railway rail 18 is connected to the inner strip 30 ofthe roadway, and thence to terminal 110 by way of wire 108. Thisconnection is conveniently provided and built in at the crossovers, andwhile not necessary, there are four such connections to strips 30 and230, shown by heavy dots on the drawing at the crossovers.

It will be understood that other ramp systems may be used to provide theclosing of a contact or in other ways to supply a pulse of current tooperate the relay.

With the sleeve ramps here shown it is assumed that only the locomotivehas metal wheels. The cars fol lowing the locomotive are assumed to haveinsulation wheels. This is the normal practise in H0 gage trains.Referring to FIG. 11, the locomotive 196 has metal wheels 198 and 190,in order to pick up current to energize the locomotive motor 200. Thewheels are insulated from one another, as by use of an insulation axle202.

Referring to FIG. 12, the motorless car 204 has insulation wheels 206which may be molded integrally with their axle 208. This insulates thewheels at one side from the other in order not to short circuit therails, which carry current of opposite polarity. In the present toy itis only the locomotive that affects the ramps.

In the wiring diagram of FIG. 1 the solenoids of the crossing gates areconnected in series. This is not essential and is done merely foreconomy. The accessory power supply to terminals 94, 96 may be at say 16volts, and with the gate coils connected in series, they each may bewound for four volts, resulting in a cheaper construction than would bethe case when using four solenoids in parallel, each wound for sixteenvolts. However, the latter may be done, if desired. Also the coils couldbe wound for eight volts each, with two connected in series for onecrossover, and two in series at the other crossover, and the twocrossovers then connected in parallel with one another.

In FIG. 1 the terminals 20, 22 are connected to a standard toy railwaypower supply, and the terminals 186, 110 are connected to a standardroadway power supply. A typical railway power supply is shown in FIG.15, in which a step-down transformer 220 is connected to a rectifier 222which in turn leads to a polarity reversing switch 224. Terminals 226are connected ahead of the switch 224 and provide a fixed voltage ofunchanged polarity for the operation of accessories. Terminals 228 areconnected to the track rails and provide a reversible voltage forreversing the direction of train operation. This is readily accomplishedbecause the miniature motors used in H0 gage trains usually have apermanent magnet field. A rheostat 230 serves to vary the track voltage,and also may open the circuit, thus making it pos sible to vary thespeed of the train or to stop it altogether.

The power supply for the road part of the toy is simpler and may be likethe first part of FIG. 15. This is shown in FIG. 16, there being astep-down transformer 232 connected to a rectifier 234, leading toterminals 236. Separate rheostats are shown in FIG. 1 at 112 and 114 forindependent speed control of the two autos. The speed controls could becombined with the power supply, if desired, but usually separate onesare preferred.

Separate power supplies for the railway and road portions of the toy aredesirable because of the polarity reversing switch which is wanted forthe railroad, but not for the autos. In the present toy the autos are tobe run only in forward direction, and it would not do to have themreversed when the train is reversed. There is no manufacturinginconvenience in providing separate power supplies because the standardunits already available are used. It is also an operating conveniencewhen several children play together, for one may operate the train, andanother the autos. Indeed, it is for this reason that the separate speedcontrols 112 and 114 are pre ferred for the autos, because two childrenmay independently control them.

The terminals 94 and 96 shown in FIG. 1 for the crossing gates have beenshown separately because they may be energized from either power source.Indeed, they may be operated by A.C. as well as DC, and therefore whenusing an C gage train operated by A.C., the terminals 94, 96 may beconnected to the accessory terminals of the A.C. power supply. Thecontrol relay coils are here shown energized from the roadway powersupply, and the track contact ramps function as they do because onerailway track, in this case the outer track 18 which has the ramps, isconnected at either or both crossovers to either or both of the innerroadway strips, in this case the strips 30 and 230.

If desired, a single power supply may be provided for both the railwayand roadway parts of the toy, and such an arrangement is illustrated inFIG. 17 of the drawing. In this case there are five terminals at 250,the first two of which (marked 1 and 2) correspond to the terminals 226in FIG. 15. The last two (marked 4 and 5) correspond to the terminals228 in FIG. and are connected by conductors 240 to the railway track242. The first two terminals are connected by conductors 244 to theroadway 246, and therefore correspond to the terminals 106, 110 in FIG.1, as well as to the terminals 226 in FIG. 15. The reversing switchaffects the railway and not the roadway. An extra conductor 248 leads toa fifth terminal 3 which is connected to the relay coils 48 and 50, thecircuit being completed by track ramps as before, and here symbolized at70 and 72. Because of the connection 248 the relay coils receive fullvoltage, and

yet the polarity is reversed when the train polarity is reversed. Inthis case the railway tracks are not connected to the roadway powersupply strips at the crossovers, and any reversal of polarity for thetrain does not affect the autos.

With a three-rail system, as for O gage trains, the locomotive wheelsand car wheels are all grounded. The locomotive is wired as suggested inFIG. 13, in which car 210 is grounded, and has metal grounded wheels212. The current supply for propulsion motor 214 is picked up through aninsulated contact shoe 216 engaging the middle or third rail.

Separate power supplies may be assumed, as in FIG. 1, and the commonconnection of the relay coils remains through conductor 116, as inFIG. 1. The outer leads of the relay coils are connected to rampsmounted on the center rail of power supply third rail of the railwaytrack. This center rail of the railway track is connected at thecrossovers to the inner supply strips 30 and 230 of the roadway. Thesystem then functions as previously described for FIG. 1, and theterminals 94 and 96 may be connected to the A.C. accessory terminals ofthe toy railway transformer.

The latter may be arranged as shown in FIG. 18, in which the terminals252 provide a variable A.C. supply for the railway track, and theterminals 254 provide a fixed voltage A.C. supply for accessories. Theroadway power supply may be a fixed voltage D.C. supply, as shown inFIG. 16, and as previously described.

It is believed that the construction and operation of my improvedrailway and roadway toy, as well as the advantages thereof, will beapparent from the foregoing detailed description. The autos 24 and 78(FIG. 1) are driven in opposite directions at any desired speed, ascontrolled by rheostats 112 and 114. The train is independentlyoperated, and its speed is controlled by a rheostat (as at 230 in FIG.15) connected to terminals 20, 22 in FIG. 1. If the train is movingclockwise, it passes ramp 128 without shifting the relay, but onreaching ramp 70, the relay changes;the power strips approaching thecrossover are de-energized; and the gates are closed. The cars come to astop as they approach a closed gate.

The cars are very small and light in weight, and they come to a quickstop even though travellng at high speed. When the locomotive reachesthe ramp it has no efiect, but on reaching the ramp 72 (at which timethe last car of the train should have reached or passed the last gate),the relay returns to original position; the gates are opened; and thepower strips are energized. Inasmuch as the power strips receive thefull voltage, the cars accelerate rapidly, and they easily coast overthe railway track portion of the crossover.

It will be understood that while the invention has been shown anddescribed in a preferred form, changes may be made without departingfrom the scope of the invention, as sought to be defined in thefollowing claims. In the claims the term auto has been used forconvenience, but it is intended to apply to any road vehicle, and theterm locomotive has been used for convenience, but is intended to applyto railway rolling stock.

We claim:

1. A traific toy comprising toy railway track sections including metalrails for power supply, an electrically driven locomotive with apropulsion motor and at least some metal wheels running on said rails,toy road sections including auto guide means and metal power supplystrips extending collaterally of the guide means, an electrically drivenauto having a propulsion motor and running on said road sections, saidrails being incapable of positively receiving said auto and said roadsections being incapable of operatively receiving said locomotive, aspecial crossover section matching said track sections in one directionand matching said road sections in the other direction, an electricallyoperated crossing gate movable to a position across a road section atsaid crossover, a control section of power strip approaching the gatebeing isolated from the main power strip for purpose of control of anauto supplied with power thereby, a relay having first and second coilsfor moving an armature in one direction or the other to close eithergate contacts or go contacts respectively, said gate contacts being inand closing a power supply circuit to the crossing gate to close thesame, said go contacts being in a circuit connected to and supplyingpower to said control section, a ramp on a railway section ahead of thecrossing and electrically connected to the first relay coil for closingthe gate and deenergizing the control section to stop the auto onapproach of the locomotive, and a ramp on a railway section beyond thecrossing and electrically connected to the second relay coil for openingthe gate and energizing the control section to start the auto ondeparture of the locomotive.

2. A traific toy as defined in claim 1 in which there are two spacedramps on the railway on one side of the crossover, and two spaced rampson the railway on the other side of the crossover, the inner or nearerramps being connected to the first relay coil, and the outer or furtherramps being connected to the second relay coil, whereby the locomotivemay be run on the railway in either direction.

3. A traffic toy as defined in claim 1 in which the road sections havetwo trafic lanes for simultaneous operation of autos in oppositedirect-ions, and in which there are two crossing gates on opposite sidesof the railway track, and in which there is a control section of powerstrip in each lane on the opposite approach sides of the railway trackand crossing gates, and in which the gate contacts of the relay areconnected to close both gates, and in which the go contacts of the relayare connected to energize both control strips.

4. A traffic toy as defined in claim 1 in which the road sections havetwo traffic lanes for simultaneous operation of autos in oppositedirections, and in which there are two crossing gates on opposite sidesof the railway track, and in which there is a control section of powerstrip in each lane on the opposite approach sides of the railway trackand crossing gates, and in which the gate contacts of the relay areconnected to close both gates, and in which the go contacts of the relayare connected to energize both control strips, and in which there aretwo spaced ramps on the railway on one side of the crossover, and twospaced ramps on the railway on the other side of the crossover, theinner ramps being connected to the first relay coil, and the outer rampsbeing connected to the second relay coil, whereby the locomotive may berun on the railway in either direction.

5. A trafiic toy as defined in claim 1 in which the road sections form aclosed loop of road which is intersected by the track sections, and inwhich there are two crossovers, one for each side of the road loop, andin which there is a crossing gate and a control power strip for eachcrossover, and in which the approach ramp is ahead of the road loop andboth crossovers, and in which the departure ramp is beyond the road loopand both crossovers, and in which the gate contacts are connected toboth crossing gates, and the go contacts are connected to both controlstrips.

6. A trafiic toy as defined in claim 1 in which the road sections form aclosed loop of road which is intersected by the track sections, and inwhich there are two crossovers, one for each side of the road loop, andin which there is a crossing gate and a control power strip for eachcrossover, and in which the gate contacts are connected to both crossinggates, and the go contacts are connected to both control strips, and inwhich there are two spaced ramps on the railway on one side of the loopand both of the crossovers, and two spaced ramps on the railway on theother side of the loop and both of the crossovers, the inner ramps beingconnected to the first relay coil, and the outer ramps being connectedto the second relay coil, whereby the locomotive may be run on therailway in either direction.

7. A .trafiic toy as defined in claim 1 in which the road sections havetwo trafiic lanes for simultaneous operation of autos in oppositedirections, and in which the road sections form a closed loop which isintersected by the track sections, and in Which there are twocrossovers, one for each side of the loop, and in which there are fourcrossing gates, one on each side of the railway track at each crossover,and in which there are four control strips, one for each lane on theappropriate side of the railway track, and in which the gate contacts ofthe relay are connected to operate all four crossing gates, and in whichthe go contacts of the relay are connected to energize all four controlstrips.

8. A traffic toy as defined in claim 1 in which the road sections havetwo traific lanes for simultaneous operation of autos in oppositedirections, and in which the road sections form a closed loop which isintersected by the track sections, and in which there are twocrossovers, one for each side of the loop, and in which there are fourcrossing gates, one on each side of the railway track at each crossover,and in which there are four control strips, one for each lane on theappropriate approach side of the railway track, and in which the gatecontacts of the relay are connected to operate all four crossing gates,and in which the go contacts of the relay are connected to energize allfour control strips, and in which there are two spaced ramps on therailway on one side of the loop and both of the crossovers, and twospaced ramps on the railway on the other side of the loop and both ofthe crossovers, the inner ramps being connected to the first relay coil,and the outer ramps being connected to the second relay coil, wherebythe locomotive may be run on the railway in either direction.

9. A traflic toy as defined in claim 1, in which a speed controllingrheostat is connected in series with the power supply to the roadsections for the auto, and in which the maximum available voltage isconnected directly to the go contacts of the relay for maximum powersupply to the control section of the power strip.

10. A traflic toy as defined in claim 1, in which a speed controllingrheostat is connected in series with the power supply to the roadsections for the auto, and in which the maximum available voltage isconnected directly to the go contacts of the relay for maximum powersupply to the control section of the power strip, and in which the powerstrip is omitted in the region across and between the rails.

11. A traflic toy comprising toy railway track sections including metalrails for power supply, an electrically driven locomotive with apropulsion motor and at least some metal wheels running on said rails, avariable power supply source connected to said rails, toy road sectionsincluding auto guide means and metal power supply strips extendingcollaterally of the guide means, an electrically driven auto having apropulsion motor and running on said road sections, a variable powersupply source connected to said power strips, said rails being incapableof positively receiving said auto and said road sections being incapableof operatively receiving said locomotive, a special crossover sectionmatching said track sections in one direction and matching said roadsections in the other direction, an electrically operated crossing gatemovable to a position across a road section at said crossover, a controlsection of power strip approaching the gate being isolated from the mainpower strip for purpose of control of an auto supplied with powerthereby, a relay having first and second coils for moving an armature inone direction or the other to close either gate contacts or go contactsrespectively, said gate contacts being in and closing a power supplycircuit to the crossing gate to close the same, said go contacts beingin a circuit connected to and supplying power to said control section, aconductive short sleeve ramp insulatedly mounted on a railway rail aheadof the crossing and electrically connected to the first relay coil forclosing the gate and deenergizing the control section to stop the autoon approach of the locomotive, and a conductive short sleeve rampinsulatedly mounted on a railway rail beyond the crossing andelectrically connected to the second relay coil for opening the gate andenergizing the control section to start the auto on departure of thelocomotive.

12. A traffic toy as defined in claim 11 in which there are two spacedsleeve ramps on a railway rail on one side of the crossover, and twospaced sleeve ramps on the railway rail on the other side of thecrossover, the inner or nearer ramps being connected to the first relaycoil, and the outer or further ramps being connected to the second relaycoil, whereby the locomotive may be run on the railway in eitherdirection.

13. A trafiic toy as defined in claim 11 in which the road sections havetwo tratfic lanes for simultaneous operation of autos in oppositedirections, and in which there are two crossing gates on opposite sidesof the track, and in which there is a control section of power strip ineach lane on the opposite approach sides of the railway and crossinggates, and in which the gate contacts of the relay are connected toclose both gates, and in which the go contacts of the relay areconnected to energize both control strips.

14. A trafiic toy as defined in claim 11 in which the road sections havetwo trafiic lanes for simultaneous op eration of autos in oppositedirections, and in which there are two crossing gates on opposite sidesof the track, and in which there is a control section of power strip ineach lane on the opposite approach sides of the railway and crossinggates, and in which the gate contacts of the relay are connected toclose both gates, and in which the go contacts of the relay areconnected to energize both control strips, and in which there are twospaced sleeve ramps on a railway rail on one side of the crossover, andtwo spaced sleeve ramps on a railway rail on the other side of thecrossover, the inner ramps being connected to the first relay coil, andthe outer ramps being con- 1 1 nected to the second relay coil, wherebythe locomotive may be run on the railway in either direction.

15. A traffic toy as defined in claim 11 in which the road sections forma closed loop of road which is intersected by the track sections, and inwhich there are two crossovers, one for each side of the loop, and inwhich there is a crossing gate and a control power strip for eachcrossover, and in which the approach sleeve ramp is ahead of the roadloop and both crossovers, and in which the departure sleeve ramp isbeyond the road loop and both crossovers, and in which the gate contactsare connected to both crossing gates, and the go contacts are connectedto both control strips. I H

16. A traffic toy as defined in claim 11 in which the road sections forma closed loop of road which is intersected by the track sections, and inwhich there are two crossovers, one for each side of the loop, and inwhich there is a crossing gate and a control power strip for eachcrossover, and in which the gate contacts are connected to both crossinggates, and the go contacts are connected to both control strips, and inwhich there are two spaced sleeve ramps on a railway rail on one side ofthe loop and both of the crossovers, and two spaced sleeve ramps on arailway rail on the other side of the loop and both of the crossovers,the inner ramps being connected to the first relay coil, and the outerramps being connected to the second relay coil, whereby the locomotivemay be run on the railway in either direction.

17. A traflic toy as defined in claim 11 in which the road sections havetwo trafiic lanes for simultaneous operation of autos in oppositedirections, and in which the road sections form a closed loop which isintersected by the track sections, and in which there are twocrossovers, one for each side of the loop, and in which there are fourcrossing gates, one on each side of the railway track at each crossover,and in which there are four control strips, one for each lane on theappropriate approach side of the railway track, and in which the gatecontacts of the relay are connected to operate all four crossing gates,and in which the go contacts of the relay are connected to energize allfour control strips.

18. A traffic toy as defined in claim 11 in which the road sections havetwo traffic lanes for simultaneous operation of autos in oppositedirections, and in which the road sections form a closed loop which isintersected by the track sections, and in which there are twocrossovers, one for each side of the loop, and in which there are fourcrossing gates, one on each side of the railway track at each crossover,and in which there are four control strips, one for each lane on theappropriate approach side of the railway track, and in which the gatecontacts of the relay are connected to operate all four crossing gates,.and in which the go contacts of the relay are connected to energize allfour control strips, and in which there are two spaced sleeve ramps on arailway rail on one side of the loop and both of the crossovers, and twospaced sleeve ramps on a railway rail on the other side of the loop andboth of the crossovers, the inner ramps being connected to the firstrelay coil, and the outer ramps being connected to the second relaycoil, whereby the locomotive may be run on the railway in eitherdirection.

19. A trafiic toy as defined in claim 11 in which the maximum availablevoltage is connected directly to the go contacts or" the relay formaximum power supply to the control section of the power strip.

20. A traffic toy as defined in claim 11 in which the maximum availablevoltage is connected directly to the go contacts of the relay formaximum power supply to the control section of the power strip, and inwhich the power strip is omitted in the region across and between therails.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,666,559 4/28Dorgan 246-126 X 1,686,251 10/28 Phillips 246-31 1,696,534 12/28 Gill246-31 1,804,491 5/31 Becker 246-255 1,891,739 12/32 Wenger 246-127 X1,912,193 5/33 Handy 246-255 2,096,894 10/37 Hall 246- 2,171,634 9/39Rexford et al.

2,188,756 1/40 McKe'ige et al 104-149 X 2,218,074 10/40 Smith 246-312,804,543 8/57 Petrick 246-114 EUGENE G. BOTZ, Primary Examiner.

PHILIP ARNOLD, Examiner.

1. A TRAFFIC TOY COMPRISING TOY RAILWAY TRACK SECTIONS INCLUDING METALRAILS FOR POWER SUPPLY, AN ELECTRICALLY DRIVEN LOCOMOTIVE WITH APROPULSION MOTOR AND AT LEAST SOME METAL WHEELS RUNNING ON SAID RAILS,TOY ROAD SECTIONS INCLUDING AUTO GUIDE MEANS AND METAL POWER SUPPLYSTRIPS EXTENDING COLLATERALLY OF THE GUIDE MEANS, AN ELECTRICALLY DRIVENAUTO HAVING A PROPULSION MOTOR AND RUNNING ON SAID ROAD SECTIONS, SAIDRAILS BEING INCAPABLE OF POSITIVELY RECEIVING SAID AUTO AND SAID ROADSECTIONS BEING INCAPABLE OF OPERATIVELY RECEIVING SAID LOCOMOTIVE, ASPECIAL CROSSOVER SECTION MATCHING SAID ROAD SECTIONS IN ONE DIRECTIONAND MATCHING SAID ROAD SECTIONS IN THE OTHER DIRECTION, AN ELECTRICALLYOPERATED CROSSING GATE MOVABLE TO A POSITION ACROSS A ROAD SECTION ATSAID CROSSOVER, A CONTROL SECTION OF POWER STRIP APPROACHING THE GATEBEING ISOLATED FROM THE INNER POWER STRIP FOR PURPOSE OF CONTROL OF ANAUTO SUPPLIED WIT POWER THEREBY, A RELAY HAVING FIRST AND SECOND COILSFOR MOVING AN ARMATRE IN ONE DIRECTION OR THE OTHER TO CLOSE EITHER GATECONTACTS OR GO CONTACTS RESPECTIVELY, SAID GATE CONTACTS BEING IN ANDCLOSING A POWER SUPPLY CIRCUIT TO THE CROSSING GATE TO CLOSE THE SAME,SAID GO CONTACTS BEING IN A CIRCUIT CONNECTED TO AND SUPPLYING POWER TOSAID CONTROL SECTION, A RAMP ON A RAILWAY SECTION AHEAD OF THE CROSSINGAND ELECTRICALLY CONNECTED TO THE FIRST RELAY COIL FOR CLOSING THE GATEAND DEENERGERIZING THE CONTROL SECTION TO STOP THE AUTO ON APPROACH OFTHE LOCOMOTIVE, AND A RAMP ON A RAILWAY SECTION BEYOND THE CROSSING ANDELECTRICALLY CONNECTED TO THE SECOND RELAY COIL FOR OPENING THE GATE ANDENERGIZING THE CONTROL SECTION TO START THE AUTO ON DEPARTURE OF THELOCOMOTIVE.